Credit Union Times Magazine March 21, 2012

Featured Story

Carla Decker Withdraws Nomination

Carla Decker, the CEO of the 10,600-member District Government Employees Federal Credit Union, last week took herself out of consideration as a NCUA board nominee.

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Featured Story

Near Death Reports Disputed

By Robert McGarvey

In an era of participatory politicking when Facebook, Twitter and other digital tools can turn any citizen into a lobbyist, have traditional trade associations entered their twilight years?

Front Page News

Segregation of Lending Duties Is Key

By Michelle A. Samaad

The timing of a collaboration between two of the industry’s well-known entities to fight employee dishonesty could not have come soon enough.
Bachus Dodges Challenge

By David Morrison

U.S. Representative Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) defeated three primary challengers to hold on to his party's nomination for his seat. Bachus is chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and received support in his campaign from CUNA's Credit Union Legislative Action Council.
NAFCU Calls on SBA

By Michelle A. Samaad

In its latest push to gather support for increasing the member business lending cap, NAFCU recently called on the SBA to aid in the fight.
FOM Limit Discounted

By Michelle A. Samaad

When a credit union makes the announcement that it is planning to convert to a bank, it almost always throws the industry into a tizzy.

News

Cost of Compliance May Come at Consumers’ Expense

By Heather Anderson

New regulations that aim to benefit consumers have become such a burden for credit unions that the cost of compliance may hamper growth and bring changes in the products, services and convenience consumers want the most.
Space Coast Goes After Wall St.

By Michelle A. Samaad

The $3 billion Space Coast Credit Union recently filed suit against Merrill Lynch, Wachovia Capital, Barclays Capital, Lehman Brothers’ former CEO Richard Fuld and major U.S. credit rating agencies, Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s, alleging that the defendants caused more than $100 million in losses to Eastern Financial Florida...
Generation Gap on Debt And Finances

A recent Experian study has found that the generation gap applies to finances and debt as well.
State Leagues Rev Up Co-Op Campaigns

By Jim Rubenstein

Thanks to last year’s Bank Transfer Day, co-op ad campaigns, conducted by state leagues, are getting a major boost this spring with spruced-up ventures under way across the South and the Midwest.
'Can Do' at Alabama CU

By Myriam DiGiovanni

Mutual Savings Credit Union has breathed new life into its brand.

Editor-in-Chief's Column

Tallying Up What We Can All Agree On

By Sarah Snell Cooke

Sitting in the sessions at the Governmental Affairs Conference or during impromptu networking sessions in the halls of the Washington Convention Center, GAC attendees are all mulling over the great successes and challenges that credit unions are experiencing every day. One thing is clear: Now more than ever is a...

People Feature

Interim CEO David Tuyo Says Watch Out Bank of America

By Myriam DiGiovanni

If David Tuyo, interim president/CEO at Pen Air Federal Credit Union, has his way, get ready for the $1.1 billion credit union to change the world.

Q&A

Cheney Assesses CUNA’s Role, Goals and Achievements

CUNA President Bill Cheney took time last week to answer questions in advance of this week’s Governmental Affairs Conference in Washington. Below are edited excerpts of the Q&A session.
Do You Support CU Access To Supplemental Capital?

The substantive economic and market-related challenges experienced nationwide over the past several years have highlighted the need for our industry to be better equipped at the strategic and operational levels to handle unforeseen market opportunities and challenges. Supplemental capital is a tool that credit unions could find useful for various...

Opinion

Political Obsessions

By Natasha Chilingerian

Gen Y members are similar to credit unions when it comes to politics. Not necessarily in their political viewpoints but in their depth of political involvement.
Foreclosures Continue to Put CUs at Risk

In the largest multistate agreement since the tobacco settlement of 1998, the Obama administration, along with 49 state attorney generals, announced a $25 billion settlement with five of the nation’s largest banks. In addition to instances of wrongful foreclosure and fraud, the government’s investigations found that banks routinely violated the...
Preserving Diversity in the Credit Union System

Given the volatile nature of the recent economic crisis, it was inevitable that pressure would build on regulators to respond to the crisis with additional regulations. Certainly some of these new regulations were promulgated in response to poor practices that exposed gaps in regulation. If credit unions are feeling overwhelmed...
Uncertainty and Haste Creates an Age of Chaos

Welcome to the age of chaos. Adaptability and change are the new standards for everything. Uncertainty and haste are the new normal. Recent news reports say people are only willing to wait 250 milliseconds for a search on the Internet. Google and Bing offer replies in less than a second. And that’s still not fast enough for...
Speaking Out: Top Five Reasons to Crash GAC

A group young credit union professionals have been gearing up to crash CUNA’s Governmental Affairs Conference again this year.

Letters to the editor

Where Was the SECU Board On CAMEL Code Release?

While the CAMEL disclosure controversy shows no signs of slowing down, maybe it’s time for reasonable heads to prevail and allow both sides to reflect upon the fallout from State Employee’s Credit Union’s action.

BAI

Confusion on Hot Topics Mobile, P2P and Social Pay

By Robert McGarvey

LAS VEGAS — The research by Boston-based AlixPartners exploded on the screen at BAI Payments Connect 2012. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the availability of good mobile services has emerged as a top factor in why consumers choose to change financial institutions, reported Teresa Epperson, AlixPartners managing director.
Will Disintermediation Turn FIs Into Utilities?

By Robert McGarvey

LAS VEGAS — Who owns the customer? The customer owns the customer, said Kausik Rajgopal, a McKinsey partner and a panelist at BAI Payments Connect 2012, the annual trade show that aims to bring together payments innovators with financial institutions.

Special Report

Kyle Markland Remains Stubbornly Member-Focused

By Michelle A. Samaad

When Kyle Markland was hired at Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union at the age of 33, he admits that the board took a chance on bringing in someone so young to lead what was then a $357 million cooperative.
David Kwant Marries Financials With Operational Finesse

By Donald Shoultz

Before David A. Kwant joined Mountain America Credit Union nearly 25 years ago, he was Utah’s supervisor of credit unions. So how does that experience help him as chief financial officer at the $3 billion West Jordan, Utah-based credit union?
Jeff Johnson Creates New Standard for Credit Unions

By Marc Rapport

Jeff Johnson has spent the past 15 years helping his credit union and the industry itself compete in the fast-changing world of delivery of financial services.
Kathryn Davis Uses Marketing to Shape CU’s Business

By Myriam DiGiovanni

Limits don’t exist for Kathryn Davis, senior vice president at El Segundo, Calif.-based Xceed Financial Credit Union.
Brett Jorgenson Awakes Lending Giant at Gesa Credit Union

By David Morrison

As financial institutions, many people would suppose that credit unions make lending money a key focus of their business. But sometimes, over time, they lose some of that focus and fail to adapt their lending programs to members' changing economic needs. That is a little of what Brett Jorgenson found...
Kristina Derkos Relishes a Passion for CU and Staff Success

By Myriam DiGiovanni

One phrase, “do the right thing,” has been at the core of what drives Kristina Derkos, senior vice president of employee relations/development at Redwood Credit Union.
Terry Richardson Sets the Member-Centric Tone

By Myriam DiGiovanni

It’s all about the member for Board Chairman Terry Richardson, but for over 34 years, to the team at Pioneer West Virginia Federal Credit Union, he has simply been the personification of an extraordinary coach.
Latino Community CU Seeks Out Banking Novices

By David Morrison

If there were a category of potential credit union members that could be described as beyond unbanked, those would be the people that the Durham, N.C.-based Latino Community Credit Union seeks to serve.
Facing Up to the Challenges for Co-Ops in Afghanistan

By David Morrison

Whenever credit union political activists grow frustrated at their work with federal or state legislators, when the doors seem closed or telephone calls go unreturned, they could pause to reflect on the duties performed by Mahir Momand.

Focus Report

Amid Tighter Regs, Corporates Hopeful On Relevancy

By Robert McGarvey

Ask corporate credit union senior executives what keeps them up at night and for many, it’s whether they can grow their business.
Syncing Sales With Service May Propel CU Brand

By Myriam DiGiovanni

Want to grow your credit union? First step, get over the stigma and negative connotations associated with the word 'sales.'
Prepping for Auto Turnaround, CUs Try New Methods

By Michelle A. Samaad

Given the stall in lending activity for many in the industry since the recession, AltaOne Federal Credit Union was expecting to see negative signs in its auto loan portfolio at the end of 2011.
Younger, Profitable Members Driving Mobile Growth

By Robert McGarvey

Speaking recently at the New Jersey Credit Union League’s Reality Check conference, John Lass put it bluntly on the direction of mobile banking.
Automation Puts Muscle in Royal's Background Checks

By Marc Rapport

Back office automation is aiding the $1.3 billion Royal Credit Union with its critical compliance activities and at the same time, executing several key growth strategies.
Credit Unions Expand Channels to Reach More

By Michelle A. Samaad

Given the relationship with their members, credit unions have a tremendous competitive advantage, according to a research paper from CUNA Mutual Group titled “Lending Strategies and Trends.” Their ability to effectively connect with their members has endured.
Natural Person CUs Say Corporates Still Fill In Voids

By Robert McGarvey

Ask Michael Bittle, CEO of the Vanderbilt University Credit Union, where his $25 million Nashville, Tenn.-based institution would be without its corporate credit union and he softly chuckles.
CUSOs Pave the Way to Aid Credit Union Growth: Guest Opinion

By Jack Antonini

One of the biggest challenges we face today is how to profitably grow while providing outstanding service and value to our members.
Tailored Mortgage Relief May Help Grow Portfolios

By Eileen Courter

When federal and state authorities and some of the nation’s largest banks agreed in early February to a $26 billion deal aimed at providing relief to nearly two million homeowners hit by the real estate collapse, the news grabbed headlines in major papers.

Tech Bytes

Bluepoint RDC in Michigan

By Marc Rapport

The 53 credit unions that use Member Driven Technologies in suburban Detroit for service bureau core processing are now being offered remote-deposit capture services from Bluepoint Solutions.
Emery FCU Goes First With Hosted Platform

By Marc Rapport

The $141 million Emery Federal Credit Union in Cincinnati is the first user of a hosted version of the NewSolutions core processing platform from Share One.
Upgrades Online at FORUM Credit Union

By Marc Rapport

The 106,000 members of the $906 million FORUM Credit Union are now being offered a new version of the Indianapolis credit union’s CU Online banking system and apps for Androids and iPhones.
Rivermark RDC First in Oregon

By Marc Rapport

More than 1,300 members have downloaded remote deposit checking apps from Rivermark Community Credit Union since March 1.
WRG Says 2011 Another Good One

By Marc Rapport

Record sales of its core products in 2011 helped Wescom Resources Group take in $939 million and maintain average annual growth of 25% through its 10-year history.
Magical Technologies Benefit CUs: Guest Opinion

By Scott Cowan

There has been a lot of talk and discussion lately about one cloud and server virtualization capabilities. If you are like most people, you’re probably wondering what all the fuss is about.
Missing From Data Leak Prevention: Guest Opinion

By David Gibson

In most organizations today, there is sensitive data that is overexposed and vulnerable to misuse or theft, leaving IT in an ongoing race to prevent data loss. Packet sniffers, firewalls, virus scanners and spam filters are doing a good job securing the borders, but what about insider threats?
Guest Opinion: Suffering From Lackluster Lobby Performance?

By W. Michael Scott

Management has struggled with fully understanding the overall performance in the lobby due to various systems capturing fragmented information.